The Pink Light in the Darkness
by thewhitearrow
Summary: Lie Ren's childhood one shot. Why he is the way he is and why he is friends with Nora. Dark and deals with material that may be uncomfortable to some readers. Rating is M due to this. Please be respectful if you review. Thanks


This is a one shot that is unrelated to my current story, RWBY and the Deathberry.

For those waiting for my next chapter of my other story it should be done soon. I was sick for a good portion of this week and being sick plus the rain tonight has made it nearly impossible to work on my current chapter in my current mood.

I wrote this on a spur of the moment thing and would ask that if you don't like it for what it's written about then please be respectful. That's all I ask for.

This deals with Lie Ren and Nora. How to completely different personalities connect and why Ren is the silent type. It is a dark childhood story for Ren so be warned.

* * *

Lie Ren is a quiet, introspective individual. His personality, his appearance, his actions all a model of near perfect order. Near perfect because small facets of each were the opposite, chaotic and unusual for one who usually displayed such control.

His long black hair was always tied in a ponytail that ended in the middle of his back. Perfectly brushed and well maintained, his hair was a deep onyx that would shine brightly from any source of light showing the great care he displayed in its appearance. Except for the strands dyed bright magenta hanging down on the left side of his face. The strands may match his eyes but it still clashes wildly with the rest of his hair.

His outfit is definitely of Asian influence with a dark-green, diagonally-buttoned, long-sleeved coat with black and gold trimming. White pants, without a wrinkle or a stain complete the outfit and give a professional appearance to the future-hunter. That is except for the bright pink cuffs on the jacket that match nothing else that makes up his outfit.

Lie Ren is the very image of calm and collected. He rarely gets flustered, keeps quiet and never causes a scene. He avoids attention and works hard to maintain the image of the perfect student. He is quiet and patient, responding to things around him only after he takes the time to assess. He does nothing to draw attention on himself, except he is friends with the loudest most energetic girl likely in the world.

The question to ask is why. Why is a person that seems to prefer control and order, Balance and peace, friends with a girl that is everything but those? That question is answered by an event of the past.  
Lie Ren was just like any boy growing up. Wild, care-free, and a bit of a troublemaker. His parents provided well for him and every necessity was fulfilled. When he grew older things began to change for his family. His parents began to fight and his father's working hours became longer and more stressful. His father's struggles weighed heavily on his family and his dad became angry blaming those around him. His fellow employees were out to get him, his wife wasn't supportive enough, and Ren wasn't behaving well enough.

It all came to a head one weekend when Ren's mother was out taking care of errands. Ren was running around playing while his father worked at his desk at home. He had only recently begun bringing his projects home, perhaps so he could stop sitting in the office for twelve hours a day. It was a reasonable idea but getting work done was difficult with a child running around. After several hours of unproductive work his father had become furious.

He yelled at Ren and dragged him by his hand out of the house and towards a nearby park. It was a rainy day so Ren asked why they were heading to the park, his father was silent as they walked making Ren uncomfortable. Ren grew restless and tried to talk to his father more. His silent and threatening glare caused Ren's heart to freeze in his chest. He had never seen his father so angry before. Ren was terrified and tried to resist going to the empty park with his father. As they entered the gate and made their way down the main path Ren became even more frightened as his father's pace quickened. When they reached a path that Ren knew led to an area that was hidden in the trees, he panicked.

The man he was with wasn't the father he knew. Even if he was a child, he had always been smart. His instincts screamed to run and so he did. Ren remembered a house just outside the park. If he could just make there he could talk to father and maybe things would be okay. He could hear his father scream at him as he ran. His short legs carrying him as quick as he could towards the house he could now see outside the gate. Halfway up the main path he could hear the footsteps of his rapidly approaching father and could do nothing when he was suddenly captured and thrown to the ground.

Ren blinked his head spinning after bouncing against the ground when thrown by the larger man that had once been his father. He turned to look at his father but froze when he felt the cold metal circle press against the side of his head.

"I could kill you right now and no one would miss you." His father's voice whispered coldly. Ren stopped breathing, his heart-beating rapidly out of control.

"You're just like everyone else. Sabotaging me. You couldn't just go quietly. I was just going to scare you, make you quiet but now. Now I'm angry." He hissed as he pressed the barrel of his dust revolver harder against Ren's temple.

Ren felt dizzy, he couldn't breathe and he couldn't move his mouth to scream in the terror he felt. Was it true? Would he not be missed? He knew he had gotten in trouble in school and his mom was frustrated. Would she welcome his disappearance? He didn't have any real friends... would anyone even notice if he never came back. Those thoughts stopped when the revolver suddenly disappeared from his head.

He turned to find his father's hand now tucked into his jacket as voices echoed from the gate to the park. A family traveling by caught sight of Ren and his father giving them a curious glance. Ren finally took a breath. He wanted to scream for help or scream at them to run from the monster pretending to be his dad.

His father grabbed his hand and yanked him up. Dragging him up from the grass to the side of the path and back up the path. The family watched silently as his dad dragged him back home. Ren limply followed not even giving the family a single expression as they questioned him silently if he needed help.

In the end when they returned home, Ren's mother was home. She wondered why Ren was soaked to the bone and why they had been out in the rain. An argument between her and his father ensued and Ren layed silently in his bed hiding underneath his blankets. He made a vow underneath those blankets to be a better son so he would be missed if he died.

A few years later his father long gone. He left his son and wife after having an affair. Ren moved to a new school where he met Nora. Nora's life shone like a bright beacon on his dark soul. He couldn't help himself and for the first time in years he became close to another person. Nora began to tell him about her own troubled family life. Not as bad as his own past but difficult to deal with he became her rock to lean on.

After nearly a year of being friends Nora asked why he was always so serious. He told her everything, Nora for the first time since he had met her was silent. She didn't say anything until he finished his tale. He waited patiently for a few seconds silently expecting her response when he suddenly was tackled. Nora cried as she held him in the tightest hug he had ever experienced. He could barely breath as the tears from the repressed emotions were finally released. For the first time Ren actually felt emotions for what had happened to him releasing them all in hot tears that didn't stop for nearly an hour.

Nora had held him as he cried and when he was finally calm she spoke.

"Ren, don't you ever worry about anyone ever missing you again. I miss you every second we are apart. You're my best friend and if something terrible were to happen you would always be remembered by me. I promise," Nora vowed her face stone serious. Ren smiled back softly just the barest of smiles really before Nora grabbed his hand.

"You can't always be so serious Ren. The only way to deal with the bad is to live through the good. Right now you're like a caterpillar in a cocoon! You lived one life and it's time for you to live the second. I think some changes are in order!" Nora said in a cheer mood with a grin on her face that honestly caused Ren to shiver a little.

"What did you have in mind?" Ren asked nervously.

"You'll see..." Nora sung as she grabbed his hand and dragged him out of his room.

* * *

"Wow, it's pink..." Ren responded staring in a mirror. His hands held the small strand of hair now dyed the bright color.

"I know!" she replied with a grin. Nora wiggled around him excitedly.

"I like it..." Ren replied softly.

"Who doesn't like pink?" Nora asked as Ren shook his head. His friend's entire wardrobe consisted of different variants of said color.

"Not anyone I want to know..." Ren replied with a smile.


End file.
